Pot applications will cost (a lot) more

June 8, 2012

With one spot open for another medical marijuana dispensary, the cost of a mere application took a leap on Wednesday.

Acting on Police Chief Dan Watson’s recommendation, the Town Council raised the fee from $300 to $1,209.

“It is conservatively estimated that the time spent on processing and reviewing the applications, not including the one-time research and development of forms, was at least 8 hours per application. The Police Department currently charges $144 per hour for police service fees,” Watson wrote in his report to the council.

“Therefore, the actual recovery cost to process a permit application for a medical marijuana cooperative would be $1,152. In addition to this fee, an additional $57 will be charged for all applicants.

“This includes a $25 fingerprinting fee and a $32 fee charged by the California Department of Justice for review of submitted fingerprints. These fees are already established by the town. Therefore, the total fees charged would be $1,209 until the fingerprinting fees increase.